Adoptive families
Adoptive families are families with a child or children who have been adopted.
The general rule is that married couples who have lived together consecutively for at least three years and non-married cohabiting couples who have lived together for at least five years may adopt a child.
If an adopted child is younger than 8 years old at the time of the adoption, the adoptive parents are entitled to a maternity/paternity leave and parental leave when the child enters the home.
Adoptive parents must tell their adopted children about the adoption when they are sufficiently mature, and in general no later than the age of six.
At the age of 18, adopted children have the right to receive all the available information concerning who their biological parents or their former adoptive parents are.
Adoptive parents have the right to receive support from their local child-welfare committee before they inform their adopted child of the adoption.
Through adoption, an adopted child obtains the same legal position with respect to the adoptive parents, their relatives and those who are related to them through the adoption as it would were it the biological child of the adoptive parents, unless otherwise provided for in law.
From that same time, the child's legal connections to its biological parents, to other biological relatives, and to those who are related to the biological relatives through adoption are cancelled, unless otherwise provided for in law.